News Expect closure of Hong Kong Disneyland and Shanghai Disneyland to impact Walt Disney World

DDLand

DDLand

Well-Known Member
HKDLer said:
Some updates from Hong Kong with regard to post #102:
- Only the Disneyland hotel and Inspiration Lake are open. Disneyland park and the other two hotels remain closed until further notice.
- Except hotel cast, most CMs (including imagineers) are asked to work from home. Standby shifts have been arranged for park frontline cast.
- Part-time cast are not released from the company, yet.
- Attractions are not being cycled during the closure. What's the point of doing that?
- HKSAR govt obtained consent from Disney to use land reserved for second gate for quarantine facilities. The proposed site next to the resort parking lot could provide 600 units and would be ready by April, should construction begin soon.
- Castle remodel and Arendelle construction are still in full swing. The Central plaza stage has just been removed today to make way for the new hub and castle viewing area à la SHDL.
- Autopia demolition completed. And HKDL is not getting the E-ticket announced for Anaheim but another version of GOTG:MB instead. Such change was made well before the protests started in June 2019. If you have paid attention to previous Marvel theme park announcements, Disney has been very quiet on the Avengers E-ticket coming to HK in 2023.
- Closure of HKDL and its struggling rival Ocean Park are seen as cost-cutting measures by some. Not long before the coronavirus outbreak, the HKSAR govt unveiled a major revamp for Ocean Park that would cost taxpayers hkd10b. It was later revealed that the park had only hkd400m left to keep it running. The low attendance caused by the protests has made it not cost-effective to keep the parks open even with reduced hours. The coronavirus just provided a valid reason to temporarily close the parks.
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Dang, if this is true I’m both surprised but also not surprised. Replacing a nifty E-Ticket with Mission: Breakout! is both totally dumb yet totally Chapek. That leaves an interesting question though. As I understand it, the Hong Kong investment called for:
1) Moana stage show
2) Ant Man rebuild
3) Castle and nighttime show
4) Frozenland
5) Frozen dark ride
6) Frozen trackless ride
7) Rebuild of existing attraction (my money was always on Space Mountain)
8) Then finishing it off with Avengers

Our big win is #6 becoming a little coaster. I’ve seen some people say #7 has been axed. If we trade out #8 for Mission: Breakout! that has got result in cost saving. Are we going to see another ride like the long promised Toy Story Midway Mania? Are costs ballooning on the project? Is this Disney waving the white flag of surrender?
 
HKDLer

HKDLer

Well-Known Member
DDLand said:
Dang, if this is true I’m both surprised but also not surprised. Replacing a nifty E-Ticket with Mission: Breakout! is both totally dumb yet totally Chapek. That leaves an interesting question though. As I understand it, the Hong Kong investment called for:
7) Rebuild of existing attraction (my money was always on Space Mountain)
Click to expand...
And/or likely the PhilharMagic update rumoured for MK's 50th anniversary.
 
Disneyson

Disneyson

Well-Known Member
DDLand said:
Dang, if this is true I’m both surprised but also not surprised. Replacing a nifty E-Ticket with Mission: Breakout! is both totally dumb yet totally Chapek. That leaves an interesting question though. As I understand it, the Hong Kong investment called for:
1) Moana stage show
2) Ant Man rebuild
3) Castle and nighttime show
4) Frozenland
5) Frozen dark ride
6) Frozen trackless ride
7) Rebuild of existing attraction (my money was always on Space Mountain)
8) Then finishing it off with Avengers

Our big win is #6 becoming a little coaster. I’ve seen some people say #7 has been axed. If we trade out #8 for Mission: Breakout! that has got result in cost saving. Are we going to see another ride like the long promised Toy Story Midway Mania? Are costs ballooning on the project? Is this Disney waving the white flag of surrender?
Click to expand...

It would make so much more sense for them to delay Avengers and clone Toy Story Mania - it’s a crowd pleaser and an easy clone, with no comparable ride in SHDL. It’s an interesting point that neither SHDL nor HKDL have a ToT style attraction, though.
 
WDW Pro

WDW Pro

Well-Known Member
HKDLer said:
Some updates from Hong Kong with regard to post #102:
- Only the Disneyland hotel and Inspiration Lake are open. Disneyland park and the other two hotels remain closed until further notice.
- Except hotel cast, most CMs (including imagineers) are asked to work from home. Standby shifts have been arranged for park frontline cast.
- Part-time cast are not released from the company, yet.
- Attractions are not being cycled during the closure. What's the point of doing that?
- HKSAR govt obtained consent from Disney to use land reserved for second gate for quarantine facilities. The proposed site next to the resort parking lot could provide 600 units and would be ready by April, should construction begin soon.
- Castle remodel and Arendelle construction are still in full swing. The Central plaza stage has just been removed today to make way for the new hub and castle viewing area à la SHDL.
- Autopia demolition completed. And HKDL is not getting the E-ticket announced for Anaheim but another version of GOTG:MB instead. Such change was made before the protests even started in June 2019. If you have paid attention to previous Marvel theme park announcements, Disney has been very quiet on the Avengers E-ticket coming to HK in 2023.
- Closure of HKDL and its struggling rival Ocean Park are seen as cost-cutting measures by some. Not long before the coronavirus outbreak, the HKSAR govt unveiled a major revamp for Ocean Park that would cost taxpayers hkd10b. It was later revealed that the park had only hkd400m left to keep it running. The low attendance caused by the protests has made it not cost-effective to keep the parks open even with reduced hours. The coronavirus just provided a valid reason to temporarily close the parks.
Click to expand...

I'll have to re- verify about part time employees, but attractions absolutely are being run every couple of days for an hour or so to keep them in working order.
 
HKDLer

HKDLer

Well-Known Member
peter11435 said:
As they should be. It should be obvious why this is necessary. It would be a mess trying to reopen after several weeks or months if they overlooked this.
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Won't be a problem unless the closure lasts more than three months. But then they can ask frontline cast to renew their cert during their standby shifts.
 
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CastAStone

CastAStone

5th gate? Just build a new resort Bob.
Premium Member
HKDLer said:
Won't be a problem unless the closure lasts more than three months. But then they can ask frontline cast to renew their cert during their standby shifts.
Click to expand...
peter11435 said:
Certifications and proficiencies are not the issue.

Its not the cast it’s the attractions themselves.
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Anything with axles, wheels, or ball bearings needs to move to stay in shape. It doesn't need to move much, but things with lubrication will eventually sink through that lubrication if not moved, and rubber wheels will slowly lose their shape if not moved. It's the same reason that if you store your car you should still drive it every few weeks, even if it's just around the block.
 
marni1971

marni1971

Park History nut
Premium Member
britain

britain

Well-Known Member
HKDLer said:
Some updates from Hong Kong with regard to post #102:
- Autopia demolition completed. And HKDL is not getting the E-ticket announced for Anaheim but another version of GOTG:MB instead. Such change was made before the protests even started in June 2019. If you have paid attention to previous Marvel theme park announcements, Disney has been very quiet on the Avengers E-ticket coming to HK in 2023.
Click to expand...

It would be interesting to see what Mission Breakout would look like if it DIDN'T have to reskin an existing Hollywood Tower Hotel.
 
Animaniac93-98

Animaniac93-98

Well-Known Member
J

jrhwdw

Well-Known Member
I guess I can't be mad if the virus is causing this but, so nice to see cutbacks after a price increse! Rollseyes! So is Harm. really deylad now? 50th in trouble?? Wonder where they got budget for Castle Gold? Maybe it was approved long ago like DL:'s Magic Happens?(thank goodness that still opens next Fri!)

When do we think SDL and HKDL will reopen? Any rumors or way too early with the current news cycle?
 

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